Class Description
Memory may drive memoir but with some distance and time we can see that while were just living our stories, history was also unfolding. People often put down memoir writing as “narcissistic," but where would history be without the first-hand testimony of individuals whose recollections deepen or complicate conventional historical accounts. Often what’s experienced in the home and neighborhood is subject to the dynamics of political, economic and cultural change. But how do we bring the larger world into our autobiographical writing without sacrificing the intimate voice of the personal? And how do we write about politics without our work veering into OpEd or polemical territory? In this class we will read the works of writers who’ve been able to successfully thread that needle, including works by Jesmyn Ward, Nick Flynn, James Baldwin, Bridgett M. Davis, Mikal Gilmore, and Garrard Conley.
Thanks to the excellent literary citizenship of our donors, scholarships are available for all GrubStreet classes. To apply, click the gray "APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIP" button. In order to be considered for a scholarship, you must complete your application at least one week before the start date of a class. Please await our scholarship committee's decision before registering for the class. We cannot hold spots in classes, so the sooner you apply, the better. Scholarships cannot be applied retroactively.
For more detailed information about GrubStreet scholarships, including how to contribute to scholarship funds for other students, click here.
This class will take place using Zoom videoconferencing. After registering, a yellow Resources tab will appear in this section containing a link to join class. Please note that you will need to be logged into view the Resources tab.
Zoom Participation:
In our experience, the intimate nature of a writing workshop benefits from on-camera participation. Students are of course welcome to turn their camera off whenever they need to, but it is a community norm for cameras to be on most of the time. You can learn more about using Zoom here.
Zoom Accessibility:
You can enable closed captioning at any time during the meeting by clicking the CC button at the bottom of the screen. If you'd like to access the transcript after class, please make sure to let your instructor ahead of time that you'd like a copy.